Your daily reminder to drink

 

There's a good chance that you don't drink nearly as much water as you should in the cooler months. During the summer, it's easy to tell when you are dehydrated. In the winter, you may not actively recognize your current hydration status. But there is still a need for water. Don't let the cooler temps fool you in thinking you are hydrated when you are really dehydrated. 

As mentioned in my book Essential Sports Nutrition: 

• Water plays a vital in many important roles within your body and you simply can’t survive without it.
• Water transports glucose, oxygen, and fatty acids through your blood to working muscles.
• Water eliminates metabolic waste products such as carbon dioxide and lactic acid in the form of urine.
• Water absorbs heat from your muscles, during exercise, and dissipates it through sweat via the skin, ultimately regulating body temperature. 
• Water helps digest food through saliva and gastric secretions.
• Water lubricates joints and cushions organs and tissues.
• Water nourishes the brain and spinal cord.
• Water is where all biochemical reactions occur.

Even though you’re made of water, you still need to drink water. Every day you lose 2 to 3 liters of water from sweating, urinating, breathing, and bowel movements. Ensuring that you’re adequately hydrated is essential to your health.

Drinking recommendations depend on many factors, but guidelines suggest a minimum of 2.7 and 3.7 liters a day of fluids for women and men, respectively.

If you struggle to drink adequate water on a daily basis, here are a few tips: 

• Keep a large (16+ ounce) water bottle filled throughout the day to encourage frequent consumption. 
• Figure out how you like your water - ice, no ice, straw, cup, glass, bottle? 
• Add a splash of 100% fruit juice, fresh lemon or lime for added flavor. 
• Set a reminder on your phone to alert you to drink once every hour. 
• Track your water intake. 
• Get into a habit of drinking first thing in the morning, as well as with all meals and snacks.